Fri, May 16 2008
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Published May 08, 2008 04:39 pm - The price of crude oil passed $124 a barrel. And gasoline rose to a new record at the pump, climbing to a national average of nearly $3.65 a gallon. Wall Street quietly rises: gas at record Wall Street closed a quiet session with a moderate advance Thursday even as oil prices extended their record-breaking run and as retailers issued sales reports that were generally not as gloomy as anticipated.
The price of crude oil passed $124 a barrel. And gasoline rose to a new record at the pump, climbing to a national average of nearly $3.65 a gallon. The retailers' sales data, meanwhile, suggested that high energy costs are leading consumers to alter their spending. Wal-Mart Stores Inc. said sales of groceries, flat-screen TVs and medications helped boost sales last month, but some apparel stores — whose merchandise falls into the category of discretionary items — again saw depressed sales as consumers budgeted more for gasoline and food. The retail readings come a day after soaring oil prices knocked the Dow Jones industrial average down more than 200 points. Yet while oil surged past $124 late Wednesday in electronic after-market on the New York Mercantile Exchange, stocks managed to hold their gains. Financial stocks were the worst performers of the day, however, as investors appeared nervous about whether the companies have problems on their books beyond subprime mortgages. The Dow rose 52.43, or 0.41 percent, to 12,866.78. Broader stock indicators turned higher after fluctuating at times during the session. The Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 5.11, or 0.37 percent, to 1,397.68, and the Nasdaq composite index rose 12.75, or 0.52 percent, to 2,451.24. 
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